Use two simple tricks to lower your iPhone’s screen brightness even further than what’s normally allowed using the brightness slider in iOS Control Center.
2 ways to lower iPhone screen brightness beyond the minimum
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Poison Maps makes great use of 3D Touch gestures
Poison Maps, a cool map app in the App Store based on the OpenStreetMap database, takes a novel approach to 3D Touch gestures versus most other 3D Touch-enabled apps, which makes it uniquely useful for navigating.
On non-iPhone 6s devices, the app takes advantage of the patent-pending Context Pan gesture letting you pan large distances by using a single touch of a finger instead of the usual two-fingered pinch-zoom gesture.
On devices without 3D Touch, however, context zooming and context panning is implemented using a long touch to control how far the map zooms out, rather then using the force of the press, as shown in a video demonstration further below.
Apple pushes intrusive iPhone 6s ad to some users inside the App Store
Twitter is on fire with reports from disgruntled users who were taken aback after witnessing a full-screen iPhone 6s ad taking over the App Store on their devices. The ad is, of course, from Apple itself and was conceived to persuade owners of pre-iPhone 6s models to upgrade to the ”ridiculously powerful” iPhone 6s.
The pop-up ad is full-screen and asks users to “Learn More,” which takes them to the iPhone 6s webpage on Apple's website, or “Upgrade Now.”
The latter option redirects users to the the Buy iPhone 6s page inside the official Apple Store app, if installed. Want to get back to what your were doing? That'll require tapping a dedicated button to dismiss the ad.
So, what's going on here?
Google Play Movies & TV gains HD and cellular streaming, AirPlay support, revamped UI & more
Just in time for the holiday season, Google has issued a major update to its official video streaming application in the App Store, Google Play Movies & TV, with several much-needed features and a fresh new design. For starters, you can now stream movies and TV shows rented or purchased on the Play store over your carrier's cellular data network. Moreover, the app has gained the ability to stream video in high-definition.
And if you own a third-generation Apple TV or higher, you can stream your Google Play entertainment right to the big screen with official support for Apple's AirPlay wireless media streaming technology.
Cut the Rope 2 goes free as Apple’s App of the Week
Apple on Thursday named ZeptoLab's Cut the Rope 2 its App of the Week. This means that from now through next Thursday, you'll be able to pick up the popular physics-based puzzler for free for both iPhone and iPad—a small but notable savings of a buck.
For those who aren't familiar with Cut the Rope, it's a cross-platform gaming franchise that revolves around feeding candy to a little green creature named Om Nom. Version 2 features new locations to explore, new characters, and fresh gameplay elements.
Tumblr app updated with support for Live Photos
Yahoo-owned Tumblr today rolled out a major update to its iPhone, iPod touch and iPad application in the App Store, bringing out official support for Live Photos, introducing 3D Touch Home screen shortcuts and a few other enhancements. Tumblr 5.0 for iOS also makes its messaging feature available to everyone today, lets you send a post to any Tumblr and toss it with the tap of a button.
Google Photos launches shared albums
As promised back in September, Google Photos has now begun rolling out shared albums on the web and in its mobile apps for iOS and Android.
Arriving just in time for the holiday season, a shared album allows friends and family to add photos to it. Those who have joined a shared album will receive a notification about any changes and newly uploaded photos.
If it sounds similar to Apple's own iCloud Photo Sharing, that's because it is, with one crucial difference: shared albums on Google Photos aren’t designed for a social world—you can't like, comment on or caption them.
Product Hunt overhauls iOS app, adds audio player, live chatting, 3D Touch support and more
Product Hunt, a Y Combinator-backed website and mobile app for sharing and discovering new products, on Thursday received a major 3.0 update in the App Store, its biggest update since the app was introduced over a year ago.
Featuring a brand new design, Product Hunt now includes live chat and a built-in audio player for listening to podcasts. An expanded search feature lets you zero in on apps, websites, gadgets, games, podcasts and books—and you can now search Product Hunt within iOS's Spotlight feature.
But that's just tip of the iceberg as Product Hunt 3.0 packs in new profile pages, expanded Collections features, enhanced product pages and much more.
GoPro releases companion Apple Watch app
I hope for your own sake that you're not one of those irresponsible guys who can be seen interacting with GoPro's mobile app on their smartphone while skating, parachuting or cycling. If you are, however, you might want to download GoPro's latest iPhone app which now includes a native Apple Watch app that lets you start and stop recording with a simple tap on your wrist.
Less time spent starring at the smartphone screen gives you more time to avoid those obstacles. What do you mean, you don't skate?
Pixelmator updated with support for iPad Pro, Apple Pencil and 3D Touch
Just two days after Pixelmator for Mac got updated with several new features, the iOS edition of the app has received a major update in the App Store this morning.
Pixelmator 2.2 now works great on the iPad Pro and takes full advantage of Apple's $99 Pencil stylus accessory. In addition, Pixelmator now includes full support for 3D Touch gestures on the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus.
iDB holiday gift guide: Christian’s picks
Is it that time of year again? Gosh, time surely flies, doesn't it? And what an action-packed year it has been in terms of exciting Apple product releases and upgrades, new-category product launches, interesting new accessories, novel new apps and games and what not.
I believe in smart holiday shopping that doesn't force you to break the bank just to purchase cool gifts that your friends and family will actually love, not pass along like a hot potato. So without further ado, I present you my personal holiday gift guide.
Tim Cook comments on Apple’s controversial new iPhone battery case
Tim Cook on Wednesday attended one of Apple's Hour of Code events in New York, where he fielded questions regarding his company's new iPhone battery case. Mashable's Lance Ulanoff asked the CEO if he was excited about the new case, which many folks have started referring to as "the hump."
"You know, I probably wouldn’t call it ‘the hump,'" he said, adding that Apple was well aware of the comments being made about the Smart Battery Case. He went on to talk about some of the advantages of it over competing products, such as how easy it is to attach and remove the case from your phone.